No wonder NAIR is so funky smelling but works as it should:Potassium thioglycolate
That skunky stench is a signature attribute of this compound, a member of the perennially pungent thiol family. A sulfur-hydrogen atom group gives thiols their sharp scent. They eat into keratin (a skin and hair protein), which is what makes actual skunk spray (and Nair) lock onto human flesh and fuzz. If the process stopped there, the result would be a home perm — weakened hairs can be easily shaped into curls